In true heavy metal fashion, the Taiwanese band Chthonic is never seen without full faces of corpse makeup. Although its first album, Where the Ancestors' Souls Gathered, was released in 1999, it was not until 2006 that the band began to see widespread international success after being named "the band to watch" by Revolver in 2006. With over a dozen member changes in its early stages, by 2007 Chthonic was complete as a five-piece led by vocalist and erhu player Freddy Lim. Also in 2007, the band received an invitation to Ozzfest, the biggest rock festival in the US, becoming the first Taiwanese band to take part in the MIDEM, the international music showcase in France. Chthonic released its sixth studio album, Takasago Army, in 2011.
